ABC News is reporting that the Justice Department found no evidence George Zimmerman intentionally violated Trayvon Martin’s civil rights when he fatally shot him in Sanford, Fla. In other words, he will not face any federal charges. The teen was not armed when he was killed in February, 2012.

The Justice Department announced today that the independent federal investigation found insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against George Zimmerman for the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida. Prosecutors from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, officials from the FBI, and the Justice Department’s Community Relations Service met today with Martin’s family and their representatives to inform them of the findings of the investigation and the decision.

“The death of Trayvon Martin was a devastating tragedy. It shook an entire community, drew the attention of millions across the nation, and sparked a painful but necessary dialogue throughout the country,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “Though a comprehensive investigation found that the high standard for a federal hate crime prosecution cannot be met under the circumstances here, this young man’s premature death necessitates that we continue the dialogue and be unafraid of confronting the issues and tensions his passing brought to the surface. We, as a nation, must take concrete steps to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future.”

Following the shooting, a team of some of the department’s most experienced civil rights prosecutors and FBI agents conducted a comprehensive, independent investigation of the events of Feb. 26, 2012. The federal investigation was opened and conducted separately from the state of Florida’s investigation of the shooting under local laws. Once the state initiated the second-degree murder prosecution, federal investigators began monitoring the state’s case and halted active investigation in order not to interfere with the state’s trial. Federal investigators provided reports of interviews and other evidence they obtained to the state’s prosecution team.

Shortly after Zimmerman’s acquittal in state court on July 13, 2013, federal investigators resumed active investigation. Federal investigators reviewed all of the material and evidence generated by the state of Florida in connection with its investigation and prosecution of Zimmerman, including witness statements, crime scene evidence, cell phone data, ballistics reports, reconstruction analysis, medical and autopsy reports, depositions, and the trial record. Federal investigators also independently conducted 75 witness interviews and obtained and reviewed the contents of relevant electronic devices. The investigation included an examination of police reports and additional evidence that was generated related to encounters Zimmerman has had with law enforcement in Florida since the state trial acquittal. In addition, federal authorities retained an independent biomechanical expert who assessed Zimmerman’s descriptions of the struggle and the shooting.

The federal investigation sought to determine whether the evidence of the events that led to Martin’s death were sufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman’s actions violated the federal criminal civil rights statutes, specifically Section 3631 of Title 42 of the U.S. Code or Section 249 of Title 18 of the U.S. Code, as well as other relevant federal criminal statutes. Section 3631 criminalizes willfully using force or threat of force to interfere with a person’s federally protected housing rights on account of that person’s race or color. Section 249 criminalizes willfully causing bodily injury to a person because of that person’s actual or perceived race. Courts define “willfully” to require proof that a defendant knew his acts were unlawful, and committed those acts in open defiance of the law. It is one of the highest standards of intent imposed by law.

The federal investigation examined whether Zimmerman violated civil rights statutes at any point during his interaction with Martin, from their initial encounter through the fatal shooting. This included investigating whether there is evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman violated Section 3631 by approaching Martin in a threatening manner before the fatal shooting because of Martin’s race and because he was using the residential neighborhood. Investigators also looked at whether there is evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman violated Section 3631 or Section 249, by using force against Martin either during their struggle or when shooting Martin, because of Martin’s race.

“Although the department has determined that this matter cannot be prosecuted federally, it is important to remember that this incident resulted in the tragic loss of a teenager’s life,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “Our decision not to pursue federal charges does not condone the shooting that resulted in the death of Trayvon Martin and is based solely on the high legal standard applicable to these cases.”

After a thorough and independent investigation into the facts surrounding the shooting, federal investigators determined that there is insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt a violation of these statutes. Accordingly, the investigation into this incident has been closed. This decision is limited strictly to the department’s inability to meet the high legal standard required to prosecute the case under the federal civil rights statutes; it does not reflect an assessment of any other aspect of the shooting.

The Justice Department is committed to investigations of allegations of bias-motivated violence and will continue to devote the resources required to ensure that allegations of civil rights violations are fully and completely investigated. The department aggressively prosecutes criminal civil rights violations whenever there is sufficient evidence to do so.

The family of Trayvon Martin issued a statement:

“We would like to thank the Department of Justice for their extensive and thorough investigation into the killing of our son. Although we are disappointed in these findings, it has steeled our resolve to continue traveling the country with the message of the Trayvon Martin Foundation.

We remain poised to do everything in our power to help eradicate senseless violence in our communities, because we don’t want any other parent to experience the unexplainable loss we have endured,” the family statement read. “We will never, ever forget what happened to our son, Trayvon, and will honor his memory by working tirelessly to make the world a better place.”

The Baltimore police tweeted on Sunday that there was an officer-involved shooting on Riggs and Fremont. The shooting occurred in front of a Trayvon Martin memorial mural, Baltimore Sun’s Yvonne Wenger tweeted.

The details on the shooting are sketchy, but police say the suspect was taken to a local hospital and the officer involved was not injured. It’s ironic that the shooting occurred near the mural memorializing Trayvon Martin, who was gunned down by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Fla.

The New Yorker magazine is making a strong statement on its latest cover showing Martin Luther King Jr. linking arms with Eric Garner and slain NYPD officer Wenjian Liu. Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown are also featured.

Barry Blitt, who drew the cartoon for the “Dream of Reconciliation” cover story said, “It struck me that King’s vision was both the empowerment of African-Americans, the insistence on civil rights, but also the reconciliation of people who seemed so hard to reconcile.” “In New York and elsewhere, the tension between the police and the policed is at the center of things. Like Trayvon Martin and Eric Garner, Michael Brown and Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, Martin Luther King was taken way too early. It is hard to believe things would have got as bad as they are if he was still around today.”

George Zimmerman, who was acquitted in the death of unarmed black teen Trayvon Martin, was arrested once again for domestic violence, MyNews13 reports. His attorney said he threw a wine bottle at his girlfriend.

Zimmerman was granted $5,000 bond on an aggravated assault charge. He was told to stay out of Volusia County, Fla.

This isn’t the first time George Zimmerman has been in trouble for assaulting a girlfriend. He was arrested in November 2013, for domestic violence in an incident with girlfriend Samantha Scheibe. It is not clear if she is the girlfriend involved in his latest domestic violence arrest.

President Obama and the First Lady discussed their own experiences with racism with People magazine, in light of the incidents of racial profiling and the police officer-involved deaths of black males. Michelle Obama said, “I think people forget that we’ve lived in the White House for six years. Before that, Barack Obama was a black man that lived on the South Side of Chicago, who had his share of troubles catching cabs.”

More from Michelle Obama:

I tell this story–I mean, even as the first lady–during that wonderfully publicized trip I took to Target, not highly disguised, the only person who came up to me in the store was a woman who asked me to help her take something off a shelf. Because she didn’t see me as the first lady, she saw me as someone who could help her. Those kinds of things happen in life. So it isn’t anything new.

President Obama added, “There’s no black male my age, who’s a professional, who hasn’t come out of a restaurant and is waiting for their car and somebody didn’t hand them their car keys.”

He alluded to the recent deaths of Michael Brown and Tamir Rice by two white officers:

The small irritations or indignities that we experience are nothing compared to what a previous generation experienced. It’s one thing for me to be mistaken for a waiter at a gala. It’s another thing for my son to be mistaken for a robber and to be handcuffed, or worse, if he happens to be walking down the street and is dressed the way teenagers dress.

Of course, President Obama’s critics will make it seem as though he is just trying to appease the black community. Never mind the fact that he is biracial.

Al Sharpton, Families of Black Men Killed by Cops, to March in Washington DC (Photo Credit: Wikipedia)

Rev. Al Sharpton and the relatives of Michael Brown, Eric Garner and Tamir Rice will stage the “Justice for All” march on Saturday along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington D.C. to protest the deaths of unarmed black males at the hands of white police officers. The march comes as Tamir Rice’s death was ruled a homicide. The 12-year-old was fatally shot by Cleveland rookie cop Timothy Loehmann.

The family of Trayvon Martin, the teen who was gunned down by volunteer neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman, will also be joining Sharpton for the march.

Members of several civil rights organizations will also take part in the march, set to begin at noon. There will also be speeches outlining the legislative agenda the protesters are calling on Congress to enact, including an end to police vilence and to reform that grand jury system, specifically when police officers are involved in deaths.

Al Sharpton said the reason for the march, “All over the country we all need to come together and demand this Congress deal with the issues, that we need laws to protect the citizens in these states from these state grand jurors,” USA Today reports. Other marches across the U.S. are also planned for Saturday.

Randy Evans, a Republican National Committee member and Gov. Nathan Deal’s attorney, blames President Obama for the racial tensions and unrest that erupted over unarmed black teen Michael Brown being shot by a white cop, Darren Wilson, in Ferguson, Mo.

During an interview on Australian TV program “Contrarians,” Randy Evans said America’s first black president squandered his chance to help improve the lot of black Americans, choosing instead to use them as “nothing more than a political tool.”

Evans said, “Well that enormous opportunity kind of got squandered because literally what happened once President Obama took office, African-Americans became nothing more than a political tool – a way to drive up votes among African-American communities.” “And I would say that over the course of his six years we probably have taken more steps backward than we have forward,” Evans added.

He also contends that the Democrats view the black community as a “convenient mechanism where every election rolls around, you hit the hot-button issues rather than actually ever resolving the core issues” such as education and unemployment.

Evans said, “What you have instead is, a kind of self-imposed unit here that is an available unit that every time an election rolls around, we push the button, we make sure… we know 92 percent of African-Americans are going to vote with the president.”

You know, he may have a point, but I don’t see where the Republican Party has stepped up and showed the black community it is a viable alternative. Instead, we have Congressional Republicans cutting programs that benefit the black community. Where’s their solution to the high unemployment rate in the black community? How many Republicans have called for increased oversight of our police departments, particularly in the area of police brutality and civil rights violations? It’s nice to preach to the choir, but the facts speak for themselves. I have yet to see Gov. Nathan Deal embrace Georgia’s black community. In fact, a recent poll shows that his Democratic rival, Jason Carter, is shellacking him with black voters.

Ross Cameron: … I want to talk about Mike Brown, a young African-American who has been shot dead by police in Ferguson, Missouri. Tell us, give us your take. Is this just a random tragedy or are we touching a wider nerve in relation to the U.S.’s macro political settings?

Evans: Well, unfortunately I think that we’re at a scenario where we had a president who had, as the first African-American president, an opportunity to really advance race relations in the United States. You know, we’ve had a tortured history in that regard.

And as a result, to have an African-American president, you would have the opportunity for every young African-American to think to themselves, “One day I too can grow up to be President.” Well, that enormous opportunity kind of got squandered, because literally what happened once President Obama took office, African-Americans became nothing more than a political tool – a way to drive up votes among African-American communities and I would say that over the course of his six years we probably have taken more steps backward than we have forward.

So, obviously, Mike Brown is the second. We had Trayvon Martin, which is a similar story — its similar unrest—and I think for the most part you’d have to say that what’s happened is the net effect, is the actual, open discussion of race has gone underground and it means that when these eruptions occur, they are far more violent, they’re far more intense and they end up getting nationalized in a way that we’ve never seen before. So you end up with…

Female participant: That’s not entirely fair. I mean, American history is littered with examples of race relations and riots and uprisings that have been quite nationalized.

Evans: Well, can you give me one during the Bush Administration? Where President Bush…

Female participant: Well, you said that we hadn’t seen before.

Evans: No, no, no. What I was saying is that in modern history you would have thought that having the first African-American president would have been a great moment of healing where every child – remember the focal point in America is everybody have the American dream and the American dream is…

Second female participant: Pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Bill Clinton, poor, white child from the South. Single mother. Grows up to become president.

Evans: Grow up to be whatever you want to be.

First female participant: Isn’t this an example of where there is advancement at some levels but in the community, for example, in Ferguson you’ve got 67% black population and 95 percent white policemen. Is that not sort of – do you think that there are grassroots problems that haven’t been solved? That can’t be the fault of the president, surely.

Evans: No, I think it is because they’ve become a political voting bloc which is a convenient mechanism where every election rolls around, you hit the hot-button issues rather than actually ever resolving the core issues.

Second female participant: But how is that taking them backwards? How is that taking the relationship backwards?

Evans: Well because the net effect is rather than solve the core problems that result in a higher incidence of African-American youth being unemployed, being imprisoned, otherwise having not the opportunities – which is that they don’t have the education, they don’t have the support structures, they don’t have the family structures.

Rather than address any of those core issues, which in fact lead to the problem. What you have instead is, a kind of self-imposed unit here that is an available unit that every time an election rolls around, we push the button, we make sure… we know 92 percent of African-Americans are going to vote with the president. [H/T Political Insider]

UN Committee Slams US Police for Use of Excessive Force Against Blacks

The United Nation’s Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) called out U.S. police for using excessive force against minorities, according to a Reuters report. The recommendation comes as protests erupted over the fatal shooting death of unarmed black teen Michael Brown by a white police officer, Darren Wilson, in Ferguson, Mo. The shooting led to civil unrest and clashes between the police and protestors. The clashes have led to a $41 million lawsuit filed on behalf of the “Ferguson Five,” who allege they were arrested, tear-gassed and shot at with rubber bullets by police while peacefully protesting.

Reuters reports that CERD reviewed the treatment of minorities and found that blacks in particular are victims of discrimination. Noureddine Amir, CERD’s vice chairman, told reporters, “Racial and ethnic discrimination remains a serious and persistent problem in all areas of life from de facto school segregation, access to health care and housing,” Reuters reports.

Noureddine Amir also said:

“The excessive use of force by law enforcement officials against racial and ethnic minorities is an ongoing issue of concern and particularly in light of the shooting of Michael Brown. … This is not an isolated event and illustrates a bigger problem in the United States, such as racial bias among law enforcement officials, the lack of proper implementation of rules and regulations governing the use of force, and the inadequacy of training of law enforcement officials.”

Reuters reports that a panel of 18 experts interviewed a U.S. delegation as part of its review of racial issues in the U.S. The panel said “Stand Your Ground” laws should be reviewed to “remove far-reaching immunity and ensure strict adherence to principles of necessity and proportionality when deadly force is used for self-defense.” Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teen who was gunned down by volunteer neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman, testified. Ron Davis, father of 17-year-old Jordan Davis, who was gunned down by Michael Dunn during an altercation over loud music, attended the Geneva session.

Eric Garner was recently killed by a NYPD officer who held him in a chokehold during his arrest over selling loose cigarettes. Ezell Ford, a mentally challenged man, was killed days after the Michael Brown shooting, by two LAPD officers while he was in handcuffs.

Trayvon Martin’s Mom: “If They Refuse to Hear Us, We Will Make Them Feel Us”

Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin’s mother, penned a letter in Time.com to the Lesley McSpadden, the mother of slain teen Michael Brown and one sentence has hit a nerve with some folks.

Fulton ended the letter with a call to action (some have called it fiery): “If they refuse to hear us, we will make them feel us.” She appeared on CNN this morning and explained what she meant, saying it was a call to vote. The Drudge Report and others ran with that statement, implying that it was a call to violence. Really? Wow.

Here’s an excerpt from Sybrina Fulton’s letter to Lesley McSpadden:

Facts, myths, and flat out lies are already out there in Michael’s case. Theories, regardless of how ridiculous, are being pondered by the pundits. My advice is to surround yourselves with proven and trusted support. Through it all, I never let go of my faith, my family, or my friends. Long after the overwhelming media attention is gone, you will need those three entities to find your ‘new normal.’ Honor your son and his life, not the circumstances of his alleged transgressions. I have always said that Trayvon was not perfect. But no one will ever convince me that my son deserved to be stalked and murdered. No one can convince you that Michael deserved to be executed.

But know this: neither of their lives shall be in vain. The galvanizations of our communities must be continued beyond the tragedies. While we fight injustice, we will also hold ourselves to an appropriate level of intelligent advocacy. If they refuse to hear us, we will make them feel us. Some will mistake that last statement as being negatively provocative. But feeling us means feeling our pain; imagining our plight as parents of slain children. We will no longer be ignored. We will bond, continue our fights for justice, and make them remember our children in an appropriate light. I would hate to think that our lawmakers and leaders would need to lose a child before protecting the rest of them and making the necessary changes NOW…

Trayvon Martin was gunned down by a wannabe cop, neighborhood volunteer watch captain, George Zimmerman in February 2012 as he walked home from a convenience store. Like Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin was unarmed.

Tea Party Leader Jesse Lee Peterson Says Michael Brown a “Thug” Because He Ran From Cop

(OPINION) — Tea Party lunatic Jesse Lee Peterson, during an appearence on “The Steve Malzberg” show said he is disturbed that “thugs” like Michael Brown, the unarmed teen who was gunned down by a white police officer on a Ferguson, Mo., street, and Trayvon Martin, are “given the benefit of the doubt.” Really dumbass?

Peterson said criminals in America, “especially black criminals,” are let off too easily. Spoken like a true hypocrite. He added, “I’ve said from day one that Michael Brown is a thug.” How did he reach this conclusion? Because Michael Brown was “running the cops, period, because good folks do not run from police officers, they follow their instructions,” according to a video posted by Right Wing Watch.

Listen to venom being spewed by Jesse Lee Peterson about Michael Brown: